By: Jamie Renner

So unless you’ve been living underneath a rock you’ve probably heard a lot of buzz surrounding a recent Indians prospect by the name of Owen Miller. The Triple-A infielder has been absolutely killing it in the minors and looks to be ready to take that next big step. The show is inevitable for him at this point as he is putting up video game numbers (slash line of .477/.511/.682 with an OPS of 1.192). But who is he?

Owen Miller is a 24 year old infield prospect who was drafted in the third round of the 2018 draft out of Illinois State University. He was originally drafted as a shortstop/second baseman by the San Diego Padres but was acquired in late 2020 by the Cleveland Indians in that massive 9 player trade featuring Mike Clevinger. When Miller gets promoted, four of the six players acquired in that trade that will be on the current active roster. Players in the trade acquired by Cleveland are Josh Naylor, Cal Quantril, Austin Hedges, Owen Miller, Joey Cantillo, and Gabriel Arias.

Owen Miller comes from one of the best farm systems in baseball (San Diego) into another great systemhere in Cleveland. He can play every single infield position and looks to fill the black hole void that is firstbase. Speaking of first base, it would not shock me if the club decides to finally move on from JakeBauers and secure a solid infield once again. Owen has a track record of being able to put the ball in play all through his minor league career having a stat-line of 849 ABs, .316 batting average, and a .827 OPS.

The kid looks great and seems to be a franchise infielder. You have to give it to Cleveland’s front office once again for making what appears to be another great trade. Cal, Josh, and Austin have been solid additions to this team. While I absolutely hate Chris Antonetti trading my guy Mike Clevinger, I want to win at all cost and while it stings having him leave, I know that this is a business. The game of baseball can be ruthless at times, this is one of those times. But hey, gotta make sacrifices in order to get what you want in this world and this is no different. Go Tribe!